Bourg man remains missing after falling into Mississippi

Hope has all but faded for a Bourg man who was missing in the Mississippi River last week. Veteran mariner Vernon Bumgarner, 59, fell into the Mississippi River north of Tunica, Miss., on Jan. 16.

Xerxes WilsonStaff Writer

Hope has all but faded for a Bourg man who was missing in the Mississippi River last week. Veteran mariner Vernon Bumgarner, 59, fell into the Mississippi River north of Tunica, Miss., on Jan. 16. Bumgarner was still missing as of Wednesday, said Tracy Ainsworth, Bumgarner’s ex-wife and self-described best friend. “They still haven’t found his body, so we haven’t got any closure yet,” Ainsworth said. Ainsworth said Bumgarner worked for Houma’s Caillou Island Towing. The initial man-overboard report came in at about 6 p.m., said Lt. Ryan Gomez, a U.S. Coast Guard spokesman.Gomez said Bumgarner was working on a tow boat when he fell in. Information about what exactly happened was not available.Initially, Gomez said officials believed Bumgarner was wearing a life vest. His vest was later found on the vessel he fell from, Gomez said. “After 24 hours, the search-and-rescue effort ended. I don’t know the reason why 24 hours was the time for this one. That comes from a higher authority,” Gomez said. Caillou Island Towing refused to comment on the incident or confirm Bumgarner’s employment. Dick Hackett, spokesman for DeSoto County Sheriff’s Office in Mississippi, said crews searched with the Coast Guard but “ran out of hope” given the 38-degree water and lack of a life vest.There was some speculation Bumgarner’s body had been found. A body was discovered Friday morning near the Port of West Memphis, Ark. “We have confirmed that it was not Mr. Bumgarner, but we have not identified the body,” said Mike Callender, chief investigator for the Crittenden County Sheriff’s Office in Arkansas.Ainsworth described Bumgarner as “awesome.”“He was a jokester. He did anything for anybody. He would jump in the water and save someone himself. He was an awesome man,” she said.Bumgarner joined the Navy in his teens and has worked on the water since, Ainsworth said. The two have a 12-year-old daughter and have remained close since their divorce, she added.